Akito Tenkawa
Akito Tenkawa 'is the main protagonist of the giant-robot anime series, ''Martian Successor Nadesico. He serves aboard the ND-001 Nadesico as both an Aestivalis pilot and a cook. History ''Martian Successor Nadesico'' Born on Mars in 2185, he was the son of two scientists. His parents were killed in a bombing when he was ten years old and so growing up in the Utopia Colony became quite hard for him from that point on. When the Jovians began their war against Earth, their first target was Mars and Akito became the sole survivor of the destruction of the Utopia Colony. He only survived because he was in possession of a chulip crystal that allowed him to Bosun-jump to Earth, though he would only discover the nature of his crystal pendant two years later. Some time after his sudden arrival on Earth, Akito found employment as a fry cook in a small Tokyo restaurant. However, he lost this job after suffering numerous panic attacks as the Jovians continued their assault on Earth. Many of the restaurant's patrons questioned whether or not Akito was a pilot who had abandoned the military, due to the IFS nano-controller imprinted on his hand, something he had acquired due to an incident with an out-of-control digging machine when he was a child. Not long after being fired (literally only minutes afterward), Akito had a chance encounter with his childhood friend Yurika Misumaru, who had been hired by Nergal Heavy Industries to command their experimental new battleship, the ND-001 Nadesico. Akito followed Yurika to the Nadesico's dock, eager to discover if she knew anything regarding his parents' murder. Upon arrival, he was questioned by the Prospector who then offered him a job as a cook aboard the Nadesico. Akito took the job, but the Jovians attacked the Nadesico prior to its takeoff. Akito didn't want to get involved in a senseless war and hijacked an Aestivalis mecha in order to escape, but found himself surrounded by Jovian attack drones. He managed to lure them away from the Nadesico and successfully destroyed a number of them, demonstrating an apparent natural talent for piloting though he had never had any training. From that point onward, Akito remained aboard the Nadesico as both a cook and a backup pilot, being promoted to a full-time pilot after the ship had taken on the rest of its pilots. During his time on the ship, he experienced more than his fair share of grief from losing his friend and fellow pilot Gai Daigoji, discovering that the Jovians were human beings banished from Earth decades ago and finding out that Nergal were responsible for assassinating his parents. However, his life on the Nadesico wasn't entirely hellish: he was well liked by the crew (particularly the ladies who all seemed to chase him relentlessly), he got to practice cooking on a regular basis and he was instrumental in helping to bring an end to the war between Earth and Jupiter. ''Nadesico: Prince Of Darkness'' In the Nadesico ''movie, set 3 years after the TV series, Akito had disappeared and was presumed dead. In reality, he and his by-then wife Yurika had been abducted by the Martian Successors and taken to one of their bases in an attempt to study and control all the Class-A Bosun Jumpers. During their captivity, Akito is experimented upon, which not only results in the loss of his humanity, but his senses, such as taste. Akito is later rescued along with Lapis Lazuli in an operation mounted by Nergal, but Yurika could not be rescued in time. Akito at first refuses to work with Nergal again, but both sides came to a compromise. Nergal will provide Akito with intelligence on the Martian Successors, including their bases, and in exchange, he will attack and steal information from them with hopes that this will lead to the location of Yurika. To become stronger, Akito asks Genichiro Tsukuomi to train him as a warrior and pilot. After his training, Nagare Akatsuki presents Akito with Nergal's newest prototype Aestivalis, the Black Sarena. It is the Super Aestivalis that was created as part of the One-Man, One-Ship Project, a next generation Aestivalis using the combination of Earth and Jovian technology. It has its own internal power source as well as the ability to Boson Jump across the Solar System at will. Nergal also gives Akito the corvette ''Eucharis along with its operator, Lapis Lazuli. Seeing Ruri in Lapis, Akito takes her in as his partner. While the experiments conducted upon Lapis destroyed her ability to feel emotions, they ended up joining Akito and Lapis, as each will supplement the other's missing senses. With this, Akito and Lapis conduct lightning raids and attack and destroy base after base used by the Martian Successors. Due to the ''Eucharis and Black Sarena's abilities to Boson Jump anywhere in the Solar System, rumors begin to spread of a "Black Ghost". Akito would later discover the location where Yurika is being held, but he is unable to rescue her in time. It is during this time that Akito finally encounters his old friends again on the Nadesico, whom were shocked to discover that he was still alive. Akito would later meet Ruri again at his and Yurika's "graves", but rejects Ruri's attempts to talk to him and become a part of her life again, as he shows her the results of the experiments conducted upon him, and believes that the Akito that she once knew is dead. Akito left giving her his secret ramen recipe, because he can never again cook it for her. Later, Akito helps in the final destruction of the Martian Successors, and personally kills Hokushin in vengeance. Despite finally saving and awakening his wife, Akito and Lapis disappear afterwards, with Ruri promising that she will find him. Personality While Akito can get caught up in the heat of battle, he generally hates fighting. He has a very caring and kind personality and is always willing to help out people in need. He is very much the "nice guy" and is well liked by just about everyone on the Nadesico, in particular Yurika Misumaru and many of the other female staff. He's no playboy but for some reason women seem to be inexplicably attracted to him, something that Akito has only seen as a bother. All these traits seem to have vanished in Nadesico: Prince Of Darkness. ''After being experiemented on by the Martian Successors, Akito becomes bitter and cold and is completely devoid of the good humour he displayed during his time on the ''Nadesico. He has become driven by revenge and sorrow. Category:Mecha Pilots Category:Martian Successor Nadesico